Bad Day
by Textell
Summary: Tony's day goes from bad to worse when he gets kidnapped. Can his team find him in time to save him? Chapter 3 now up!
1. Chapter 1

"Dammit," Tony muttered, as he tried to start his car for the umpteenth time. It was only 7:30 am and Tony could already tell it wasn't going to be a very good day. For starters, it was pouring outside, and by the looks of it, the rain wasn't about to let up any time soon. He had slept through his alarm and woken up late, not having time for his morning run and to top it all off, a girl that Tony had finally managed to get a date with after weeks of working his charm called and left him a message, cancelling their date because an old friend was in town.

Finally giving up, Tony grabbed his gear and ran the two blocks to the nearest bus station. Upon entering the bus, Tony remembered why he hated taking public transportation and always avoided it at all costs. The bus was overcrowded and the only place available was next to a dirty, old sleeping man. When the bus started, the man's head tilted to the side, so his head was resting on Tony's shoulder.

"Oh great," Tony mumbled, rolling his eyes as the man snored loudly in his ear.

NCISNCIS

"Dinozzo, you're late," Gibbs barked as Tony strolled into the bullpen.

"Sorry boss. Car wouldn't start. I had to take the bus. It won't happen again."

"It better not," Gibbs growled.

Sitting at her desk, Ziva David pretended to be working on a report for a cold case, all the while listening to Gibbs chew Tony out.

The day progressed slowly. Tony was getting restless and antsy. They hadn't had a case for almost two weeks. For the past week, the team had been working on reports and looking at cold cases.

At noon, Gibbs went to Director Sheppard's office for a meeting. Tony took this opportunity to sneak down to visit his favorite forensic scientist.

NCISNCIS

"Tony!" The young Goth greeted him with a giant hug.

"Good to see you too," Tony replied, once Abby finally released him.

"I've been bored out of my mind down here," Abby replied, grinning from ear to ear, obviously happy to have a visitor.

"Upstairs isn't any more exciting," Tony stated.

Tony glanced over Abby's shoulder to see what project Abby was currently working on. A bored Abby always found some odd project to occupy herself with. "What's that," Tony asked, pointing at some sort of model made out of an assortment of candy, including licorice, marshmallows and gummy bears, being held together by toothpicks and string.

"Oh, just a DNA model I'm working on." When Tony gave her a funny look, Abby replied, "Well I'm bored. What else do you expect me to do? It's not like you use your free time in the most constructive way either," Abby replied, referring to the computer games that he was often caught playing on days like today. "Gummy bear," Abby asked, holding a bag up to Tony's face. Tony took a generous handful and stuffed them in his mouth.

The pair gabbed about office gossip, their relationships, or lack thereof and talked animatedly about old westerns, with Tony exclaiming that they were the greatest genre while Abby insisted they were boring.

"I better head back up before Gibbs gets back and chews my ass off," Tony said, heading out.

"OK. Bye Tony," Abby replied, turning back to her model. "And come down and visit me more. It gets pretty lonely being cooped up in here all day without any visitors."

"Will do," Tony replied.

NCISNCIS

Tony arrived back at the bullpen before Gibbs, which he was grateful for, because he really wasn't in the mood to be reprimanded at the moment. Mere seconds after Tony sat in his desk, he saw Gibbs arrive with two cups of coffee in hand and looking to be in a fowl mood. '_Meeting must have not gone over so well_,' Tony thought as he looked through some cold cases.

McGee and Ziva also noticed Gibbs bad mood and the bullpen remained quiet for most of the afternoon. There wasn't even the usual banter between Tony and Ziva.

The day ended uneventfully. By four-thirty, the team was heading out the door to their respective homes. As Tony left the NCIS building, he couldn't shake the feeling that he was being followed. He kept his hand on the gun, ready to use it if the situation required him to do so. Tony made several three sixties, looking in all directions. He couldn't see anyone, but that only added to the uneasy feeling that he had. There was a steady drizzle, which motivated Tony to walk faster.

_You're just being paranoid Dinozzo_, Tony told himself.

Tony turned the corner to a fairly deserted street. This wasn't the best part of D.C., that was for sure. The apartment buildings were covered with graffiti and many of the windows were broken or boarded up. Tony increased the pace at which he walked, not feeling all that comfortable in this part of town, even with his gun. Tony was lost in thought for a few moments, going over what a crappy and boring day this had turned out to be. For a few moments, Tony let down his guard. Suddenly, Tony felt cold metal against his back, quickly realizing it was the barrel of a gun.

"Don't turn around and don't try to run or else I shoot," a voice hissed into his ear.

"Who are you?" Tony asked.

"You will find out soon enough, Dinozzo," the voice hissed again.

That struck fear into Tony. This man knew his name. Before he could react, Tony felt the gun strike him and he surrendered to darkness.

A black van pulled up around the corner, and the mysterious figure, along with two other men, hoisted the unconscious Dinozzo into the van. This was definitely not Tony's day.


	2. Chapter 2

NCISNCIS

Ziva was at her desk, phoning Tony for the fifth time. Ziva got Tony's answering machine once more and decided to leave a message for him. "Where the hell are you Tony? You better get your ass here soon if you want to keep your job. Gibbs is pretty pissed. He's on his third cup of coffee already"

"Couldn't get a hold of him," McGee asked, pointing out the obvious.

"Nope, just his answering machine," Ziva replied.

"Do you think he's alright? He's usually not late," McGee said. He got a cold stare from Ziva and quickly followed up with, "I mean, a lot of times he sneaks in a few minutes late, but he's never this late."

"I'm sure he's fine. Just probably out chasing skirts," Ziva replied, trying to sound indifferent, but deep down, Ziva was beginning to worry about Tony too. This just wasn't like Tony. He was supposed to be in over an hour ago. What if something really did happen to him? He may be annoying as hell and juvenile at times, but over time, Ziva began to actually care for this man and began to even consider him as a friend.

Gibbs loud voice interrupted Ziva's thoughts. "Dinozzo still not here."

"N-No," McGee stuttered. "We've tried calling both his house phone and his cell phone. We couldn't get a hold of him. Ziva even left a message for him."

Gibbs usually emotionless face showed concern for a second. Dammit Tony, what kind of trouble did you get yourself into this time?_ I swear, Tony can find more trouble than anyone I know,_ Gibbs thought.

"Ziva, McGee, I want you to head to Tony's apartment to see if you can find anything out. If he's at home sitting on his ass, tell him to not even bother coming back to work," Gibbs replied. This was another slow day and Gibbs would be busy with meetings for a good portion of the day, so he could spare the two agents for a little while. Gibbs gut was telling him something was very wrong with this whole situation.

McGee and Ziva quickly left the bullpen and headed for the elevator. They rode down in silence, neither one wanting to bring up the possibility that something had actually happened to Tony. Despite all the teasing McGee received from Tony, McGee had grown to respect him as a person and as an agent and was even striving to become more like him. If they ever lost Tony, things definitely wouldn't be the same around NCIS. Despite Tony being juvenile and frat boyish once in a while, he brought life to NCIS and to the team. '_No. I'm sure Tony's fine. I'm going to feel like a dumb ass when I find out I've been worrying for nothing, and Tony will definitely not let me live it down_,' McGee thought.

NCISNCIS

Tony slowly opened his eyes and the first thing he noticed was the sharp pain in the back of his head. He tried to touch his head with his hands to find out that they were tied behind his back. '_Oh great_,' Tony thought. '_Why does this stuff always happen to me_?'

Tony lifted his head slightly to get a look at his surroundings. What a bad idea. Tony began feeling nauseous and had to close his eyes, taking deep breaths to stop himself from throwing up. '_Let's try this again' _Tony thought, slowly opening his eyes.Slowly his eyes began to adjust to the darkness. There wasn't much to look at. There were various pipes around the small room. All of the walls and the floor seemed to be cement. There was a little ray of sunlight coming from a small window near the ceiling. Tony tried to think of how he had ended up in this predicament. _Oh yeah. It was because my stupid car wouldn't start and I had to walk to the bus station after work_,' Tony thought, groaning loudly. Then Tony recalled that his captor had known his name. Who the hell was this guy and what did he want.

Tony was getting impatient with the waiting game and just wanted the guy to show his face. He just wanted someone he could be pissed off at. Tony got his wish. Moments later, Tony heard a door open and a tall figure walking towards him.

"I see you've finally woken up Dinozzo," the guy calmly said. It was almost to calm for Tony's comfort.

"Who the hell are you and what do you want?" Tony asked.

"I don't think you're in any position to be talking to me like that Tony. I'm the one in control this time. How does it feel to be helpless Dinozzo? It doesn't feel so good, now does it?" The man brought his face closer to Tony's, and for the first time, Tony was able to get a clear view of him. Tony involuntarily let out a gasp. He recognized the face of his old friend and partner, Mike Landers.

NCISNCIS

When Ziva and McGee arrived at Tony's apartment, McGee knocked on the door three times without receive an answer. "Maybe he's sleeping," McGee said, trying to convince himself more than Ziva. Ziva shoved McGee over to the side as she methodically picked the lock.

"Ziva, that's breaking and entering," McGee said, with a shocked look on his face. With a quick glare from Ziva, McGee shut up.

They entered the quiet apartment and took a quick look around. It was quickly evident that Tony wasn't in the house. "OK, now I'm really starting to get worried," Ziva said, with a look of concern on her face. This didn't make McGee feel any better. Like Gibbs, Ziva was good at masking emotion, and McGee knew it was definitely worth worrying about if Ziva showed concern.

Ziva and McGee exited the apartment, with McGee running into an elderly lady.

"'Scuse me," McGee replied.

"Where you just in Anthony's apartment," the elderly lady asked, eyeing them suspiciously.

"Yeah we were," Ziva said. When the lady frowned, Ziva went on with her explanation. "You see, we work with Tony and he didn't show up for work today so we were just looking for him." Ziva held up her badge.

"NCIS," the lady read. "You're saying Tony's in trouble." The woman's face became serious, worry etched on her face.

"And you are…" Ziva began.

"Oh, I'm Ms. Cabot, his next door neighbor," she replied, "Is Tony missing? I've been warning Tony about maybe changing professions, telling him how dangerous his job is and how it's going to get him killed," the elderly lady said, growing frantic.

"We're not sure. For all we know, he could be taking the bus to work as we speak," McGee replied.

"When was the last time you saw Tony," Ziva asked.

"Let's me think," Ms. Cabot said, lines creasing across her forward as she tried to think. "Come to think of it, I didn't hear him come home last night. These walls are paper thin and you can hear everything in this building," Ms. Cabot explained. "I usually hear him when he comes home from work. He's not the quietest neighbor. I think the last time I saw him was the day before yesterday." Ms. Cabot was in deep concentration now. "Yeah. I didn't see him or hear him at all yesterday."

"Thank you for your help Ms. Cabot," McGee said as him and Ziva were heading out.

As they left, McGee gave Ziva a worried expression. "This isn't good," the young agent said.

_Understatement of the year_ Ziva wanted to say, but bit her tongue. _Where the hell are you Tony?_

As McGee and Ziva were pulling away from Tony's house, Ziva called Gibbs to give him the bad news. "We couldn't find him Gibbs and when we talked to one of his neighbors she said that she didn't think Tony had come home at all last night."

"Shit," Gibbs replied. "Get back to the office and we'll figure out what to do from here."

NCISNCIS

"You ruined my life Dinozzo and I'll make sure that you pay greatly for that," Mike said with a menacing laugh.

"Mike, you don't have to do this. If you hurt me, I have friends that will hunt you down and won't rest until they find me. If you let me go now, no one has to know about this."

"Why the hell would I do that," Mike spat. "I lost my family, my job and seven years of my life because of you Dinozzo. Because you couldn't keep your goddamn mouth shut and ratted me out." With that, Mike gave him a swift kick to the side, eliciting a loud groan from Tony.

"You deserved to lose everything. You were a dirty cop and didn't deserve the badge," Tony replied, growing angry and unable to stop the words before they came out of his mouth.

That earned him another kick to the side. "You know, I could put a bullet through your head right now," Mike replied, bringing a gun up to Tony's face. "But that would be too easy. I don't want you to die a quick, easy death. I'll make sure it's a painful and slow one."

Tony glared at his ex-partner, trying not to show fear, but deep down, he was terrified. "My boss will find me," Tony said confidently. _Right now would be a good time to break down the door yelling NCIS Boss_ Tony thought.

"Oh, they'll find you, but by the time they do it'll be to late," Mike replied, giving another one of his menacing laughs. Mike began delivering more kicks to his stomach and face. Tony tried to hold on as long as he could but finally blacked out.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N – Thanks for all your great reviews. In regards to what shirik asked about the three-sixty, I just meant that he turned around in a full circle a couple of times. I have most of the story done and will try and update every couple of days. I hope you enjoy this chapter.

NCISNCIS

Ziva, McGee and Gibbs gathered in the bullpen, trying to figure out what could've happened to the missing agent. "OK," Gibbs began. "Yesterday morning Tony's car wouldn't start so he took the bus to work. We can assume that he must've been heading towards the bus station on Harrison Street when he disappeared. Ziva, I need you to retrace his steps and be on the lookout for anything that might pertain to Tony's disappearance. McGee, I need you to go down to the lab and help Abby out searching the database for anyone who might have a grudge against Tony."

"On it boss," McGee replied as he and Ziva headed to the elevator.

The only good news, Gibbs thought, was that they hadn't received a call telling them that their missing agent was found dead. At least not yet.

NCISNCIS

"Any luck Abs," McGee asked, bearing a large Caf-Pow.

"Not yet, McGee. Most of the people who would have a grudge against Tony are still in jail. How come we're always losing Tony?" Abby asked in an exasperated tone.

"We don't lose Tony," McGee said in a timid voice, wincing, knowing that what Abby said had some truth to it. "He just has a knack for finding trouble."

"Tell me about it," Abby replied. "First he gets drugged and kidnapped and is taken to the sewers by some crazy chick, hell bent on revenge against some marines, then we chain him to some psychotic killer and lose him again," Abby says, taking a large drink from her Caf-Pow. "Then while on and undercover mission, Tony and Ziva are taken hostage by some crazy assassin and he gets the crap beat out of him and shortly after that him and Ziva get locked in a shipping container were Tony gets shot."

"I know Abs, I was there," McGee replied. "But Tony has always managed to come out of these types of situations alive. He's like a cat. He has nine lives."

"Yeah, I know," Abby replied. "But his luck is going to run out one of these days." McGee pulled Abby into a hug. Abby never had a problem showing emotion for people she cared about and she freely cried on McGee's shoulder. After a few minutes of crying, Abby pulled away. She wiped some tears away and said, "This isn't helping us find Tony any faster." With that, she went back to her computer, going through the database, trying to find out anything she could to help her friend. McGee occupied the computer next to Abby, also searching for possible leads regarding Tony's disappearance.

After a few short minutes, Abby excitedly pulled her phone from her lab coat and dialed Gibbs number. "Gibbs, you have to come done here right now. I might have some information on who took Tony," Abby said, jumping up and down on her heels.

NCISNCIS

Ziva was slowly making her way to the bus station, looking all around her for anything that could help Tony. Turning the corner, Ziva saw the state of the neighborhood that she was entering and she didn't like it at all. It was definitely not the most ideal neighborhood to be in by your self.

As much as she wanted to hurry and get out of this neighborhood, she had to take her time, making sure that she didn't miss anything. Out of the corner of her eye, Ziva spotted a gun and a cell phone near some bushes. She knelt down, pulled out a pair of latex gloves and quickly identified them as her partners. _Damn Tony. Who did you piss off this time_, Ziva thought. She quickly put them in two bags, hoping that Abby might be able to gather some useful information from them.

As Ziva was pulling out her cell phone, ready to call Gibbs with her findings, she spotted a middle aged woman peering out from behind her curtains. Stuffing her cell phone back into her pocket, Ziva went to the door and gave it a couple quick knocks. Ziva had a feeling that this woman might know something in regards to her lost partner, and if she did, Ziva was going to find out. _Hmm. I must be having one of those gut feelings that Gibbs always has,_ Ziva thought to herself, allowing a small smile to show on her face.

When no one opened the door, Ziva called out, "I know you're in there. I saw you, so you might as well come out before I break this door down."

The door opened about halfway, with an African American woman staring at her. "Who are you and what do you want," the woman asked.

"I'm Special Agent Ziva David, NCIS," Ziva said, pulling out her badge.

"Never heard of them," the woman replied.

Ziva wasn't in the mood for this. She rolled her eyes and said, "Look ma'am, my partner went missing yesterday and I'm hoping you might be able to give me some information to help me find him. May I come in?" Ziva asked, trying to remain calm and polite in hopes of having this woman open up to her. _How the hell does Tony do this_, Ziva wondered. Whenever Ziva and Tony had a situation where they needed a witness to open up to them, it had always been Tony to get them to open up, by using his charm and remaining patient with them. Ziva had a newfound respect for her partner's abilities to remain calm.

The woman gave Ziva a glare and closed the door. _Great, _Ziva thought. Suddenly she heard the sound of a chain and realized the woman was unlocking her door. Seconds later, the woman cautiously opened her door, looking around at the streets and allowed Ziva to enter.

Ziva entered the tidy apartment. It was small but well taken care of. Ziva looked around at a picture of a tall, handsome African American man with two kids hanging off of him. "That's my late husband," the woman answered, seeing what Ziva was looking at. "And my two kids, Adam and Rebecca. Can we hurry up with this? I don't want my kids coming home to find a complete stranger in the house," the woman said impatiently.

"Oh yeah," Ziva said, returning her gaze to the woman. "I already told you my name. What about you?"

"I'm Tanya Vincent. Can I offer you coffee or tea," the woman suddenly asked.

"No thank you. I'll only be here for a few minutes, after I ask you a couple of questions."

"OK, but how does you partner disappearing relate to me," she asked.

"Well it doesn't, but I just noticed you looking out your window when I was searching for information about my partners' whereabouts. Did you see this man walking through this part of town yesterday, sometime between four thirty and five o'clock," Ziva asked, holding a picture of Tony for the woman to see.

"He looks familiar. I think I might've seen him," the women said, her voice faltering under Ziva's intense glare.

"Might've," Ziva said, quickly getting annoyed with the woman.

"Yes, yes, I definitely saw him," the woman said, finally relenting.

"What was he doing," Ziva asked, happy that she was finally getting some answers.

"Well, he was hurrying down the sidewalk, probably wanting to get out of the rain. I saw a man following him, gun in hand. The man quickly caught up to your partner and I saw him holding a gun to his head. He was whispering something to your partner." Tanya stopped for a second and looked up at Ziva.

"Well," Ziva said, unable to mask her irritation.

"The man hit your partner over the head with his gun. Then a black van pulled up and the man and two other's dragged his body into the van."

Ziva was beyond angry. "And why the hell didn't you report this to the cops," Ziva burst out.

"Well, around here we try and keep to ourselves. We try not to get caught up in other people's business. That's how you get yourself killed around here."

Ziva sighed, putting her head in her hands, counting to ten, trying to calm herself down. "OK. Thank you for your help," Ziva said, heading for the door.

"I won't get in any trouble, will I? I mean for withholding information and stuff," Tanya said.

Ziva didn't reply but just headed out the door. _Well, at least I've got some answers, _Ziva thought to herself.

NCISNCIS

Tony let out a groan. "Why do I feel like shit," Tony wondered. It all came rushing back to him. The kidnapping, Mike Landers and the beating. Tony realized he was no longer lying on the floor. He opened his eyes and saw that he was sitting on a chair, his hands tied behind his back and his feet tied to the legs of the chair. Tony tried to assess his injuries. His ribs were definitely bruised and a couple may even be broken, Tony thought. One eye was swollen almost completely shut, and his shirt was torn, revealing many bruises across his chest.

The door at the top of the stairs squeaked open and Tony feigned sleep, hoping that Mike would leave him alone. Tony realized Mike wasn't alone as he heard another pair of feet and voices.

"I want you to keep an eye on him and if he gives you any trouble, feel free to do what you think you need to do," Mike told the guy. Tony opened his good eye a little to get a look at the man Mike was talking to. He was a tall guy and well built. Even when Tony was up to par, he doubted he could overtake this guy. He seemed to be all muscles.

"Right," the big man replied. "I'll keep him in line." By the looks of it, the guy would only be too happy to give me a good beating, Tony thought.

Mike went back upstairs, leaving Tony alone with the large man. The man noticed Tony staring at him and said, "I see you've finally woken up." Getting mere inches away from Tony's face, he said, "Give me any troubles, pretty boy, and you'll deeply regret it." To make sure Tony got the message, he backhanded Tony in the face, causing the agent's bottom lip to split open. This elicited a groan from Tony and caused the other man to laugh. Tony remained quiet, fearing the repercussions.

NCISNCIS

"His names Mike Landers. Tony and Mike used to be partners back in Baltimore. From the reports, it appears that Mike had some shady deals and an investigation began. It appears that Tony was the one who outed Mike. After that, Mike and his wife got a divorce, taking their two kids with her. Mike of course lost his job and he was sent to prison to serve a five to ten year sentence. He was released three weeks ago," Abby stated proudly to Gibbs, McGee and Ducky, who had returned to work early, from what was supposed to be a two week vacation once he heard about Anthony.

"Good job Abby," Gibbs replied.

Gibbs cell rang and he answered it with a curt, "Gibbs."

"OK. What? Why the hell didn't she report it? Dammit. Ok, we'll meet you up there in five." McGee, Ducky and Abby listened to the one way conversation.

"Did Ziva find anything in regards to Anthony," Ducky asked, seeing the anger in his old friends face.

"Yeah. She found Tony's gun and cell phone about a block away from the bus station. Apparently, a lady that Ziva talked to saw a man knock Tony out and put him in back of a black van and drive off."

"What? Why didn't she report it yesterday?" McGee asked.

"She was afraid of the repercussions," Gibbs simply replied. "Come on, Ziva's waiting for us upstairs."

NCISNCIS

Everyone was gathered in the bullpen as Ziva told them what she had found out and gave Abby the gun and phone so she could check for fingerprints.

"Where exactly did you find the gun and phone again," Abby asked, examining the new evidence.

"In the bushes, right outside some weird thrift store called 'The CatWalk.'

Abby grinned, causing her team some confusion. "What is it Abs," Gibbs asked, showing a little irritation in his voice.

"Because of the high crime rate in that part of the city, most stores around the area have security camera's inside and outside the stores. I'm betting that the CatWalk has one since it's one of the nicer stores in the area."

"Good work Abby. McGee, I need you to go to this CatWalk place and get the footage. Ziva, I want a full background check done on this Landers guy. Abby, see if you can pull any prints off the weapon or his phone. I doubt it, but we have to make sure we cover everything."

"On it Boss." Ziva, McGee and Abby went to do their respective tasks as leaving Gibbs and Ducky alone in the bullpen.

"He's going to be fine, Jethro. You'll find him in time," Ducky reassured his friend.

"I hope so Ducky," Gibbs replied.


End file.
